Millennium Challenge Account
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| Agency overview | |
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| Formed | January 2004 |
| Headquarters | Washington, D.C. |
| Employees | ~300 (2011) |
| Agency executive |
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| Website | www.mcc.gov |
The Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) is a bilateral United States foreign aid agency established by the U.S. Congress in 2004, applying a new philosophy toward foreign aid. It is an independent agency separate from the State Department and USAID.
At the Inter-American Development Bank meeting on March 14, 2002, President George W. Bush called for a new compact for development with accountability for both rich and poor countries. He pledged to increase development assistance by 50% by fiscal year 2006 (which, by the end of 2004, doubled and was to double again by 2010). Other development programs like USAID have been thought to suffer from many different and sometimes conflicting goals, which often are a result of political pressures, and for not delivering long-term economic improvements.
MCC was authorized in 2004 with bipartisan support. Its guiding principles are:
The first CEO of the Millennium Challenge Corporation was Paul Applegarth, a private business person with experience managing emerging market investments. Applegarth was followed by John Danilovich, a private business person who had served as the U.S. Ambassador to Costa Rica from 2001 to 2004 and then U.S. Ambassador to Brazil. On November 20, 2009, Daniel W. Yohannes, an Ethiopian-born American business person, was confirmed by the Senate as the newest CEO of the corporation. The current Millennium Challenge Corporation CEO is Dana Hyde.
The MCC Board is made up of representatives. These include the MCC's CEO, the U.S. Secretary of State who is the chair, the Secretary of Treasury who is the vice chair, the administrator of USAID, the U.S. Trade Representative and other private-sector or development-related officials.
A country is considered eligible for a compact (aid grant) if its score on 17 indicators exceeds the median score of its peer group. All 17 indicators are compiled by third parties with no connection to MCC; MCC grants are made without considering politics. This is perhaps the most innovative aspect of MCC, as previous foreign aid missions were plagued by political considerations. The focus of the MCC is to promote economic growth in the recipient countries. The program emphasizes good economic policies in recipient countries. The Bush administration has stated its belief that development aid works better in countries with good economic policies, such as free markets and low corruption.
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